Friday, 6 July 2012

Sam Stern's Lancashire Burgers

Ah, the simple pleasures of winter. Steaming mugs of tea. Picking lemons off the tree. Baking bread. Coming home to a warm house. Melted cheese. Last weekend in between making barley stew and gingerbread men, I made Lancashire Burgers from Sam Stern's Eat Vegetarian. They were fantastic. Unlike most burgers I make, I shallow-fried these. They were crisp and golden and tasted as good as fried cheese.

I found the Sam Stern book in the library. Apparently he is a teen celebrity chef and cookbook writer. I really liked the modern feel of the book. It has lots of tempting British old-school vegetarian recipes - including these burgers, cheese fat rascals and nut roast. I agree with the reviewer on amazon.co.uk who remarks 'If you like Jamie Oliver you'll like Sam Stern.' This recipe was quick, easy and tasty, albeit not for those who are counting calories.

The burgers seemed unlikely to work when I had a bowlful of crumbly mixture. Yet once squished together they looked like burgers and when the cheese melted it held them firmly together. (They reminded me of these cheesey pumpkin sausages.) Sam Stern suggested serving them in a bun with salad. I wasn't so organised. Nevertheless I highly recommend these for a quick weekend meal with chutney, roasted pumpkin and steamed brussells sprouts. They were also lovely cold the next day.

Mix together all ingredients (except vegetable oil). Sam Stern chilled his mixture but I didn't. The mixture looks like it isn't coming together enough but squish a handful together to make a patty. Repeat until you have 6 burgers. Heat a few tablespoons of oil in a heavy based non-stick frypan over medium-high heat. Fry burgers in oil for 4 minutes on each side until golden brown and crispy. Drain on kitchen towel and eat warm.

I fear that the cheese would put me off these, but I imagine Mr B would love them. I like the sound of the cookbook too - I will have to keep an eye out for it. It's been a while since I visited a local library and I'm overdue for a trip!

Thanks Kari - these are not for the cheese-averse but it is an interesting cookbook - I haven't been to the library for a while but am glad I took notes on a few recipes from this book because it is a good un

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Recipes and reflections in which our vegetarian heroine dreams of being tall and graceful as a giraffe; being a goddess in the kitchen; and being gladdened by green gadgets, green food and green politics because green is the colour of hope. See About Me for more info.